Integrity of the Fountainhead

Have been reading the Fountain head of late and am loving it.

And what I like most in this book are the conversations on integrity - Integrity of a building, Integrity of the person who builds a building ( here an architect ) .

Hope you enjoy the post. ( Inspired by Raghav's series on Alchemist )

Below is one such conversation --

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Roark , a student of architecture in the Staton university has just been expelled from the university for his submission of a ridiculous design. His dean is trying to make him see sense and trying to have a conversation with him to get him back to the university. ( Roark however is clear that he has learnt whatever he had to in the university and is in no mood to get back ).
Presenting this post on Roark's idea of integrity :)

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" But I dont understand. Why do you want me to think that this is great architecture ?" Roark pointed to the picture of the Parthenon .
"That, " said the Dean , " is the Parthenon"
"So it is. "
"I havent the time to waste on silly questions "
"All right then". Roark got up , he took a long ruler from the desk, he walked to the picture. "Shall I tell you whats rotten about it ?"
" Its the Parthenon!" said the Dean.
" Yes , God Damn it, the Parthenon!"
The ruler stuck the glass over the picture.
"Look , " said Roark. "The famous flutings on the famous cloumns - what are they there for ? To hide the joints in wood - when columns were made of wood, only these arent, they are marble. The triglyphs , what are they ? Wood . Wooden beams, the way they had to be laid when people began to build wooden shacks. Your Greeks took marble and they made copies of their wooden structures out of it, because others had done it that way. Then your masters of the Renaissance came along and made copies in plaster, of copies in marble, of copies in wood. Now here we are , making copies in steel and concrete , of copies in plaster, of copies in marble, of copies in wood. why ? "
" Rules ? " said Roark . " Here are my rules : what can be done with one substance must never be done with another. No two materials are alike. No two sites on earth are alike. No two buildings have the same purpose. The purpose, the site , the material determine the shape. Nothing can eb reasonable or beautiful unless it is made by one central idea and the idea sets every detail. A building is alive like a man. Its integrity is to follow its own truth, its one single theme , and to serve its own single purpose. A man doesnt borrow pieces of his body. A building doesnt borrow hunks of its soul. Its maker gives it the soul and every wall , window and stairway to express it . "

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What do you think of this conversation . What is "integrity " for you ?

Post script --

If you are interested to know more about the Parthenon and the Roman Architecture , check out this link. http://ancienthistory.about.com/od/partheno2/ss/aa061300a.htm

Will put up more conversations from the Fountainhead on and off..( not as a series) - so keep watching :) .